Estrogen and the thyroid. Both play crucial roles in a woman’s health, influencing literally everything from mood to metabolism. While underactive thyroid is a well-known condition, its lesser-known partner in crime is estrogen dominance. In this post, I will dive deep into the fascinating connection between estrogen dominance and hypothyroidism, estrogen genetics and also sharing simple tips how to improve hypothyroidism by improving estrogen dominance naturally.
Decoding Estrogen Dominance
At the heart of the estrogen-thyroid connection lies estrogen dominance. Estrogen dominance is a hormonal imbalance that sets the stage for myriad of health issues like fibroids, endometriosis, mood disorders, insomnia, fatigue and weight gain amongs others. Estrogen dominance occurs when estrogen levels overwhelm progesterone. It happens quite often due to various factors such as chronic stress, birth control pills, genetics, environmental toxin and poor gut health. When talking about estrogen dominance and hypothyroid connection,
I really want to emphasise the huge influence of chronic stress on hormonal balance. Let me tell you, stress and cortisol are like thieves, snatching away your precious progesterone. And you know what else? Commonly used birth control pills – they put a stop to ovulation and decrease your body’s natural progesterone production. It’s like a double punch on your hormonal balance that at the end of that day can lead to hypothyroidism. I will explain how exactly in a moment so stay with me:)
Symptoms of Estrogen Dominance
If you suspect you might have estrogen dominance, here are some common signs and symptoms to look out for:
- Moody Swing Central. One minute you’re on top of the world, experiencing moments of euphoria, the next you’re in a deep low. After a while you feel like emotional high and lows are just part of the way you are.
- Bloating Blues – Feeling constantly bloated and uncomfortable, like you swallowed a balloon. The worst part, no matter what you eat the bloating is just not going away.
- Tender Boobies – Yes, we’re talking about breast tenderness that feels like they’re gearing up for a boxing match.
- Weight World War III – you’re doing your best to eat right and exercise, but still weight loss seems to be impossible!
- Sleepless nights – Tossing and turning all night, unable to get deep restful sleep.
- Period Rollercoaster – Irregular periods dropping in without a warning, annoying PMS symptoms and uncontrolled sugar cravings few days before your bleeding starts. On the top of that unbearable period pain that can leave you feeling like staying in bed all day long.
- Brain Fog Mystery – It’s like you know you need to work and focus but it feels like your brain’s still on vacation – you’re forgetful, struggle to make decisions and just can’t think straight
The BIGGEST MYTH About Estrogen and Menopause
Menopause is like a hormonal hurricane and I have to mention about one of the biggest myths about estrogen and menopause. There is this common misconception that when estrogen levels drop in menopause, you need more estrogen to balance it out. Here’s the real deal. When you enter menopause phase both estrogen and progesterone levels decline. And guess what? Progesterone takes an even bigger hit! That means, you might have low estrogen levels and still find yourself dealing with estrogen dominance symptoms. It’s not just about the estrogen level alone. It’s all about the delicate dance between estrogen and progesterone.
Finding that perfect balance between those two is crucial. Yes, you need to address low estrogen levels during menopause, but don’t forget about your progesterone levels too! They’re both super important in this hormonal symphony. And here’s a little bombshell – hypothyroidism can sneak in out of nowhere during menopause because of that excess estrogen in relation to progesterone. Estrogen dominance is the one to blame, causing chaos and disrupting greatly your thyroid function.
Estrogen Dominance – The New Modern World Epidemic.
Estrogen dominance has been on the rise over last few years, becoming a modern-day epidemic. It’s affecting now women of all ages, not just those going through menopause. I have noticed a concerning trend – more and more young women in their 20s are experiencing lots of estrogen dominance related issues. It’s like this issue has skyrocketed over the past few decades, and there are a couple of culprits to blame. The biggest are environmental xenoestrogens. They’re all around us, sneaking into our bodies and messing with our hormones.
Excess alcohol consumption and birth control pills have a great contribution to it too. And as if that’s not enough, our poor liver has to deal with all of it. It’s doing double time compared to 50 years ago! Not only is it dealing with clearing excess hormones as it always has, but now it’s also facing a whole range of toxins, pesticides, food additives and pollutants. Anyway let’s get back to estrogen metabolism and estrogen-thyroid connection. It’s all linked, and it’s important to understand this tangled web of hormonal complexities.
The Genetics of Estrogen Metabolism: The COMT Gene and Estrogen Dominance
In the middle of this hormonal labyrinth there is intriguing world of genetics, where the COMT gene steals the spotlight. The COMT gene is responsible for producing enzyme that plays a critical role in estrogen metabolism. Some women, like me for example are genetically predisposed to have a slower version of the COMT enzyme, resulting in reduced estrogen breakdown and prolonged exposure to its effects. This genetic predisposition can contribute to estrogen dominance and its subsequent impact on thyroid function. If you have downregulated COMT genes it doesnt mean you have to have estrogen dominance and hypothyroidsm, it just means that your body may need extra support and avoid things that interfere with COMT activity.
COMT gene, stress and your hormones
The COMT gene does more than just deal with excess estrogen; it’s also in charge of metabolizing cortisol, the stress hormone. So, if you have a naturally slow COMT and you’re dealing with daily stress, your body’s got double duty! It’s not only trying to handle extra estrogen but also tackling cortisol. Now, here’s the kicker – if you don’t process cortisol efficiently, it’ll snatch away your precious progesterone. And when you’ve got less progesterone hanging around, combined with higher estrogen levels, that’s a perfect recipe for estrogen dominance and feeling constantly wired.
How Estrogen Dominance Affect Thyroid Function Leading to Hypothyroidsm
Research reveals that excess estrogen plays a massive role in inhibiting thyroid function so let’s delve into how estrogen dominance can slow your thyroid down and cause range of hypothyroidism symptoms.
1. Estrogen Dominance and Thyroid Hormone Receptors
First of all, estrogen cunningly binds to thyroid hormone receptors, preventing the thyroid hormone from exerting its metabolic effects. This blockade results in a cellular-level hypothyroidism, leaving a trail of insidious symptoms, including relentless fatigue, unrelenting weight gain, and the distressing loss of hair, among others. So when you look on your blood thyroid hormone levels, they may be within normal range and you may wonder “why am I still feeling that way”. Estrogen dominance could be your answer!
2. Estrogen and Thyroid Binding Globulin (TBG)
Secondly, estrogen interferes with the transport proteins responsible for ferrying thyroid hormone in the bloodstream. Like an obstructed highway, estrgoen can hinder the smooth transport of thyroid hormone, reducing its delivery to the cells.
Moreover, excess estrogen levels cause the liver to produce more thyroid binding globulin (TBG) which binds thyroidhormones in your blood and decreases the amount of thyroid hormone available to the body. You can think about bound hormone as unavailable and unbound or free circulating hormones as available and ready to be used.
In a nutshell, your thyroid hormone production might be on track, but if you’re dealing with excessive estrogen or have trouble metabolizing it, your thyroid can take a major hit. This can leave you feeling fatigued, struggling to shed those extra pounds, and experiencing unexpected bouts of anxiety. It’s all about that tricky estrogen-thyroid dance!
How to Balance Estrogen Metabolism for Thyroid Health
For every conundrum, there exists a solution, and the same holds true for the estrogen-thyroid tango. By embracing a holistic approach, we can tip the scales in favor of hormonal harmony. Here few basic tips and trick what you can do to improve your estrogen dominance and also improve your thyroid:)
- 1. Fiber Feast – Welcome an abundance of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains to your table. Fiber acts as a gallant knight, binding to excess estrogens and escorting them out of the body. The most important is soluble fibre present in chia and flax seeds amongst other. Carrots are also one of my favourite if it comes to clearing excess oestrogen as they contain pectin – estrogen binding compund.
- 2. Probiotic Power – Cultivate a thriving garden of gut bacteria by consuming fermented foods and high-quality probiotic supplements (if needed). A healthy gut microbiome aids in efficient estrogen metabolism. With unbalanced gut, the enzmye called beta-glucuronidase, produced by the bacteria in the estrobolome can become too active. With high beta-glucoronidase activity, estrogen can get re-absorbed back into the body, instead of getting excreted in urine and/or poo.
- 3. Stay Zen – Stress is a big-time estrogen booster, try to stay calm durig the day. Practice yoga, breathing, meditation, art of journaling or anything that makes you happy – do it! Avoid alcohol though as it can make you feel relax for a moment but it also skyrockets your estrogen levels.
- 4. Sweat It Out – Engage in regular physical activity to bolster estrogen metabolism and enhance the elimination of unwanted hormones. Women’s body is very sensitive to hormonal changes. Exercise but do it with mdoerate intensity. Crazy HIIT workouts or CrossFit can throw your hormones out of balance. As a rule of thumb don’t overexercise and keep your heart rate between 110 and 130 bps.
- 5. Liver Love – Liver is yous master organ. Nourish your liver with the goodness of broccoli sprouts, lemon water, antioxidant rich foods and milk thistle. A well-supported liver will breakdown excess estrogens more effectively. DIM may be helpful quite often but its only one piece of this whole puzzle. Click here to learn more about phase 1 and phase 2 of liver detox and the most important nutrients required for each phase.
- 6. Xenoestrogen Clean Up – Say goodbye to estrogen-mimicking demons found in plastics, personal care products, and other lurking corners of your life. Go natural whenever you can. I even stop using lotions now (swapped It to coconut oil) and regular face wash gels (swapped to organic simple soap).
Remember, you hold the power to sway this intricate hormone dance in your favor. If you need guidance on understanding your condition and how the right diet and supplements can alleviate your symptoms, feel free to reach out for personalized advice! I’m here to help. 🙂
EN 
PL
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